The Barefoot Serpent

Rating:
Summary: Great Little Story
Review: "The Barefoot Serpent" is Scott Morse's tribute to the master filmaker Akira Kurosawa; a fully painted tale of Kurosawa's life, and a charming story of hope make up this captivating book.

While vacationing in Hawaii, a girl and her family--who are slowly disconnecting after suffering a death in the family--each take part in their own journey of resolution which brings them closer together.

Morse's fantastic painted portion of the book is colorful and vibrant, while the black and white stylized art portion is very effective for conveying the emotions of all of the characters and the innocence and veiled sadness of the young girl.

For Kurosawa fans, Morse fans, or for readers looking for a comic book that is different from the norm, "The Barefoot Serpent" comes highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Great Little Story
Review: "The Barefoot Serpent" is Scott Morse's tribute to the master filmaker Akira Kurosawa; a fully painted tale of Kurosawa's life, and a charming story of hope make up this captivating book.

While vacationing in Hawaii, a girl and her family--who are slowly disconnecting after suffering a death in the family--each take part in their own journey of resolution which brings them closer together.

Morse's fantastic painted portion of the book is colorful and vibrant, while the black and white stylized art portion is very effective for conveying the emotions of all of the characters and the innocence and veiled sadness of the young girl.

For Kurosawa fans, Morse fans, or for readers looking for a comic book that is different from the norm, "The Barefoot Serpent" comes highly recommended.

Rating:
Summary: Take me in, tender woman, sighed the snake
Review: Soon I'll be flying to Hawaii to attend one of my best friend's weddings. While there I'll be staying with another friend of mine who is currently earning her teaching license on the island of Oahu. She's a fan of children's literature and my hope was to find something that she could grab ahold of and enjoy. It seemed "The Barefoot Serpent" was the perfect choice so I grabbed a copy. Like all great graphic novels, this book deserves a second reading. And a third. Those who'll get the most out of this creation will be those people that are capable of a quiet think. Those who aren't capable will simply find it a wonderful read.

The story at the heart of this book is couched between the life of the filmmaker Akira Kurosawa. Scott Morse has retold the life of the great artist in brief. Though this tale has nothing to do with "The Barefoot Serpent"'s main tale, it gives the reader to understand that much of this story is heavily influenced by Kurosawa's works. In the main tale itself, we meet a small girl, her mother, and her father. The girl's older brother committed suicide not too long ago and the family has taken a trip to Hawaii to ease their hearts. The wife goes for a ride across the island, meeting up with a woman running a shaved ice stand. The husband stays on the beach dealing with what he find there. The daughter follows the sounds of the Night Marchers and discovers a young boy. Most of the story follows these two characters. The boy has recently carved a mask and he decides to ask his uncle to purchase it. The girl tags along and the uncle explains to the boy that the mask speaks of sorrow. The kind of sorrow, "like a snake wit no shoes on". After thinking this through the boy offers the mask to the girl and through it she comes to accept her brother's death.

Scott Morse provides an Afterword to his book that explains the ways in which Kurosawa influenced his story. Elements from such movies as "Dreams" and "High and Low" (which I've seen) are included, as well as scenes from "Yojimbo" and "Drunken Angel" (which I haven't seen). There's little question that the reader familiar with Kurosawa's works is going to get more out of this piece than those who have not, but fortunately the book does not hinge on having viewed Akira's films. It helps, but it's not required. This book is, in the creator's own words, a story that contains, "hope at its heart". For that reason, it's successful.

The art is great, but I'm speaking as someone who doesn't read graphic novels all that often. I can't compare it to any other artists out there. Maybe the television show "Grim and Evil", but that's a bit of a stretch. All I can say about it is that it conveys the story beautifully. I can't help but continually go back to parts of it over and over again. I don't know why, but this book speaks to me. Morse is equally adept with his dialogue. The Hawaiian Pidgin English is dead on and often lyrical.

I keep trying to find graphic novels that will help introduce newbies to the medium. This is an excellent starter g.n. with the kind of appeal that will entrance adults and children alike. We rarely see art forms that are of equal interest to kids AND their older counterparts. Thanks to books like, "The Barefoot Serpent", it's becoming less rare.